Thursday, October 2, 2014

31 Days of Horror: Psycho

Anthony Perkins, as Norman Bates, explains his hobbies in Psycho.

In addition to our
regular programming, every day this month, Last Cinema Standing will be
bringing readers recommendations for great horror films and thrillers as we
make our way to Halloween. This should not be treated as a “best of” list but
more as a primer. You can read the full introduction to Last Cinema Standing’s
31 Days of Horror here, and be sure to check back each day for a new
suggestion.

Day 2: Psycho (1960)

Let it not be said that Alfred Hitchcock lacked a sense of humor.
In Psycho, he takes one of the most
popular actresses of her time, turns her into a petty criminal on the run from
the law, and shows her what true villainy is in a run-in with one of the
all-time great horror movie characters.

That actress was Janet Leigh, cast as the thieving Marion
Crane, who stops in for a fortuitous stay at the Bates Motel. Here, she meets
Norman, who runs this inn with his best friend – his domineering mother. The
creep factor ratchets up very high very quickly as Norman explains with great
care his love of taxidermy and the bond he shares with the Bates matriarch.

It is hard to overstate just how unprepared audiences were
for this film. They expected a thriller, but the level of fear Psycho inspired was on a whole other
level. Despite being the master of suspense, this may have been Hitchcock’s
only true horror film, unless we are counting The Birds, and it is Hitchcock who elevates the proceedings beyond
mere voyeurism.

Try as one might, it would be hard to assign any deeper
meaning to Psycho. Written by Joseph
Stefano and based on the book by Robert Bloch, most of the nuance is contained
there in the title, but that just makes the magic trick pulled off by Hitchcock
and Anthony Perkins, who plays Norman, all the more impressive.

Depending on your perspective, Norman may be a villain, but
he is also deeply sympathetic. We may not condone his actions, but Perkins make
us feel what Norman feels and makes us understand why he does what he does. The
role followed Perkins for the rest of his career, and he was typecast as the
creep from there on out. But, he never did it better than here – in fact, few
have ever done it better.

After years of making popular blockbusters with big-name
stars, the distinctive style of Psycho
was borne of Hitchcock’s desire to get down to brass tacks and make a no-frills
chiller. He reined in his more showy tendencies, embraced the grit, and
produced a down and dirty classic. For a director famous for flash, Psycho is as matter of fact as they
come, and as such, it is a masterpiece.

Tomorrow, one of
Hitchcock’s favorite horror films as broken minds and broken hearts collide in
a classic French thriller.